Inflorescences : racemes weak, generally exceeded by leaves. Flowers : petals sometimes crested. Capsules pendent or spreading at maturity, slender, 18-24(-30)mm. Seeds without marginal ring. 2 n = 16.

Flowering spring-late summer. Talus slopes, ledges, rocky hillsides, forest clearings, open shores, creek bottoms, gravel pits, road cuts, and burned-over areas, in loose, often gravelly soil; 100-3400 m; Alta., B.C., Man., N.W.T., Ont., Que., Sask., Yukon; Alaska, Ariz., Calif., Colo., Idaho, Ill., Mich., Minn., Mo., Mont., Nebr., Nev., N.H., N.Mex., N.Y., N.Dak., Ohio, Oreg., Pa., S.Dak., Tex., Utah, Vt., Wash., Wis., Wyo.; n Mexico.

Corydalis aurea subsp. aurea intergrades at times with C . aurea subsp. occidentalis , but usually the two can be distinguished readily when fruiting.